And Now a Word from Brian "Maceman" Mace

March 11th, 2009, 05:59 AM

Some interesting thoughts from Texas disc golf promoter Brian Mace on his website www.maceman.com on working for free, the future of disc golf promotion, how we as a community are sometimes our own worst enemy, etc. This guy is a legend in Texas DG and a very experienced TD and promoter. I'm putting this in the ORS thread because I think it is relevant, but if you want to continue speculating and arguing over who bought and owns the tables and trailer and all the stuff, and who did or didn't make or "donate" money to the ORS please consider posting it in the "turd-dropper" "$80,000 donation" thread. I think there's something we can all learn from Brian Mace.

At this point in time I have made the decision to discontinue operation of The North Texas Series. I will continue to run some of the events that I have run in the past, but the number will be down significantly from years past.

I will no longer be working in Disc Golf as a means of support effective immediately. I will be doing some stage work again, as well as exploring other business opportunities. I have put myself second for far too long and that will not continue. I will split my time in a manner that is more beneficial to me from now on.

Thanks to all that have supported me, and gone the distance with and for me. I am truly grateful and I can't thank you enough. Anyone who put me up or set me up with a friend to stay with along the way, I wish I had made a list so I could send you a thank you letter. But those of you who really know me know I would not get around to it. So I will thank you here. I could not have done all of the things I have done in the last 14+ years without your help, thank you very much. The countless friendships and good times that have come my way through out all of this are the great reward that I will always cherish. Thank you all so much.

I will continue to run PIO (January), Cedar Hill (post Super Bowl), Z Boaz Open (late April), A to Z Doubles (late Feb or early March, in a similar time frame as other doubles events in TX), and Waco Charity Open (late May or early June). There will not be a Big Show series again any time soon.

In the future I will run these events in very different manner, with a completely different approach. That approach will be based firmly in reality. You want a big event? You want to receive the benefits of a big event? You have to pay for it. I am certianly not going to pay for it any more. Nor will I go out and beg people in the local community to give us money because our sport is so cool and we are even cooler than that. You want to see a big event than buy a fundraiser disc. You want to see an even bigger event than help me sell some fundraisers in your neighborhood or town. You want more? Are you a top player? Than allow me to sell a round, a half day, or a full day with you on and around the course. It only makes sense. You want more than do more. I currently have around 40 CFR Destroyers that I will ship for $25 ea, that money will go to PIO and generate more support for subsequent events. Email me brian@maceman.com

You may not want to hear this, but we are not that cool and we are not going to get there any time soon. We do not have any power in the advertising market, and we are not capable of generating anywhere near the attention necessary to pull down the sponsorship that many of us demand. I am going to let you in on a secret, sponsorship is advertising. Advertising is done to generate business, not to make beggars happy.

Unfortunately we are not that good at supporting our sponsors, and we are seen as a group that receives but rarely gives in return. Besides all of that we are just us, no spectators' just players. We aren't even drawing a crowd that is large enough to pull down the dream sponsor money at the biggest and greatest event in the game why would the XYZ Open suddenly be the one to make it happen?

This sport has a lot of good people that have the bad habit of talking really loud about a topic they have little to no knowledge of. It is amazing how many people there are in this game that know more about running a business and or events than the person that actually does it. Then lets throw in some unrealistic expectations and demands on top of it all. The end result is a person giving it his all, and the reward is a sound beating in one form or fashion from the main beneficiaries. Not to mention the bonus end reward, the reputation that comes from all the kind words of all the winners that hauled home the inadequate payout at the end.

Have you ever heard of the bucket crab mentality? If you take one crab and a bucket, put the crab in the bucket. He can easily reach the top and pull himself up and over the edge to freedom. But if you put a few crabs in the bucket, the one on top can easily reach up and pull himself over the edge to freedom. The problem is that the other crabs see the one "getting ahead of them" and they reach up and grab the crab and try to pull themselves up as well only to pull the first crab back down on top of them again.

Unfortunately disc golfers are a lot like bucket crabs. The local promoter is the first crab, and the players are the other crabs in the bucket. Most bucket crabs don't know or even care what is going on. But there's that one super sleuth crab that has appointed himself as the local watch crab. He's on the job keeping anyone from "getting rich" or gaining freedom, and if there is the hint of progress or something appears slightly out of line he will be on the scene. But not really, he will be out there somewhere talking really loud, but never taking the time to do all of the home work. Preaching in his outside voice about the perceived injustice but never really doing a complete investigation on the situation. Gathering all the facts "I need" as proof, and then pushing through the conviction without a trial and moving straight to the punishment.

If that local promoter isn't entitled to anything for his efforts, why should he do the work? Who among you will work this week for free? I know the answer is a resounding no from all, so why then should this or any local or national promoter do any of this for you with no pay? It is work, it takes up time, and it should be rewarded. The thing that is sad is that it goes on in every town in every state in the game. The names are different but the game is the same.

In case you didn't read the paragraph above I ask again, if you are not willing to work this week for free, why should your local disc golf promoter work for you for free????

Wake up you local promoters. Your merch has a value and in order for the game to move forward and you to succeed you need to realize that value. Otherwise we are just moving the same money around over and over again. All of the basic equipment is so cheap even at full retail compared to other sports equipment. It is so counterproductive to try and work a promoter for a dollar or two on a disc price, when that is the actual growth of the sport.

This is all so simple and so stupid all at the same time. Here are my recommendations as of September 2008.

Players wise up and enjoy what you have. Stop beating on your local promoter unless you are willing to do what they are doing, and if so you must do it better than the person before you or why get rid of them dumb ass? You keep throwing stones at that guy or gall doing all the work for you, and they will go away after they get hit enough times. Then who will you have to throw stones at???

Promoters take the time and learn what you are doing. You and the game really need to get the full value from your products; it is the only thing that the economy of the game can count on year after year. You are not Sam Walton, and the sport is not Wal-Mart. We are all the sport has, no sponsor is going to come along anytime soon and take us to the next level. We have to wise up and become real business people or get out. If your not swimming your treading water and you just as well get out of the pool. DO something original, gain an edge and compete with that. Don't hide behind a cut rate price because you aren't really bringing anything to the plate in the first place. Don't exist in this business just to rape the market and the game, do it some good or move on.

You can agree with me or disagree I don't care and I wasn't asking. I am telling you what I think and how I feel. Disc Golf used to be my passion. That was taken away little by little over time, and now I don't know what to say. I feel like I have been robbed in many ways. I can't afford to give my life away for free any more.

You can send me an email or we can discuss any or all of this on the discussion board here on maceman.com when I get around to it. brian@maceman.com

To those of you who have gone out of your way to undermine me and my efforts, you can fill in the blanks _ _ _ _ _ _ _.

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Yep, i agree, as a TD myself, that was solid. If you not gonna contribute to a tournament then you cannot say anything negative about it. Thanks to all those crabs out there, we are losing good TD's one by one...

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If you not gonna contribute to a tournament then you cannot say anything negative about it. Thanks to all those crabs out there, we are losing good TD's one by one...

I totally disagree. As a current member of the pDGA I have the right and responsability to speak up. I too feel this thread is the way forward but those who don't know the past mistakes are destined to repeat them.

or the einstein quote
Insanity defined as conducting the same experiment over and over but expecting different results

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But Jub, you and I both have a nasty habit of finding the negative and blowing it up in our minds to where it is the only thing that matters. We tend to lose sight of all of the positive that accompanies the negative and we end up looking like grouches who want nothing more than to find something to complain about.

I do not believe that I have ever read you post something positive about the Bellingers or Jay Harbour or any number of other people you disagree with. It has been a long time since I have posted anything positive about Jerry. Perhaps it is time that we both stop focusing on the negative and recognize the commitment and effort put in by the people we do not particularly care for but have definitely helped grow the sport we love? I know that I am going to try to force myself in this direction and hope you'll join me in encouraging those who can and have done good things for our sport.

ďI believe I can hit 18 greens, hit every fairway, you know ó Vision 54, which means you birdie every hole, thatís in the back of my mind. I want to putt better, chip better. That day when I hit 18 greens and one putt, Iíll know Iím a complete golfer. Will that ever happen? Iím not sure, but itís possible. The 54 vision is always in the back of my mind.Ē~Annika SŲrenstam

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But Jub, you and I both have a nasty habit of finding the negative and blowing it up in our minds to where it is the only thing that matters. We tend to lose sight of all of the positive that accompanies the negative and we end up looking like grouches who want nothing more than to find something to complain about.

I do not believe that I have ever read you post something positive about the Bellingers or Jay Harbour or any number of other people you disagree with. It has been a long time since I have posted anything positive about Jerry. Perhaps it is time that we both stop focusing on the negative and recognize the commitment and effort put in by the people we do not particularly care for but have definitely helped grow the sport we love? I know that I am going to try to force myself in this direction and hope you'll join me in encouraging those who can and have done good things for our sport.

Sam? Is that you? Or did you give out your password?

Nicely done.

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Maybe he just need a vacation to mecca more often (Chavez ravine). Personally PAC Bell is great but I am still a "stick man" Where else can you get frostbite in the morning , sun burnt in the afternoon and frozen again that night.

Sam you are correct about my nay saying but it seems so many people have rose colored glasses on they lose sight of whats really happening.

Anyway I am trying to be less critical of those who except the real challenge of this sport. Apathy

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But Jub, you and I both have a nasty habit of finding the negative and blowing it up in our minds to where it is the only thing that matters. We tend to lose sight of all of the positive that accompanies the negative and we end up looking like grouches who want nothing more than to find something to complain about.

I do not believe that I have ever read you post something positive about the Bellingers or Jay Harbour or any number of other people you disagree with. It has been a long time since I have posted anything positive about Jerry. Perhaps it is time that we both stop focusing on the negative and recognize the commitment and effort put in by the people we do not particularly care for but have definitely helped grow the sport we love? I know that I am going to try to force myself in this direction and hope you'll join me in encouraging those who can and have done good things for our sport.

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Sam you are correct about my nay saying but it seems so many people have rose colored glasses on they lose sight of whats really happening.

But that's the thing - It is not your responsibility to take their rose-colored glasses off for them nor are you likely to be successful when you criticize something that people feel passionate about. You might have raised some good points about the Bellingers and the Oregon Series but the way you presented them led me to want to defend them at all costs rather than look objectively at what you were trying to get me to look at.

I have spent the past 13 years trying to take off the rose-colored glasses of Christians. I have reached some but the majority have found my arguments such that they get rabid in their defense of what I see as the indefensible.

ďI believe I can hit 18 greens, hit every fairway, you know ó Vision 54, which means you birdie every hole, thatís in the back of my mind. I want to putt better, chip better. That day when I hit 18 greens and one putt, Iíll know Iím a complete golfer. Will that ever happen? Iím not sure, but itís possible. The 54 vision is always in the back of my mind.Ē~Annika SŲrenstam

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With Matt's permission, I moved this into the general Disc Golf section. I'm not sure if everyone reads stuff in the OR Series section, and thought this is a message that all disc golfers should see.

Sam and Jub, it's nice to see you guys in a more mellow state...very Dude-like, I may say.

Jub, I think your heart is in the right place, but your posts often have more criticisms than suggestions. So I think we're all in agreement that its totally acceptable for TDs to be compensated for their work, right? Is your ideal setup where all the financial matters are transparent so you see where every last dollar goes, even if some of it goes into the TDs pocket? That would just be giving the nay-sayers more ammo, I'd think, having proof that a TD was "robbing the players". On the other hand, if a tourney is expensive, and there isn't much of a player pack and/or the payouts are dinky, I'd be suspicious. By and large though, I'm not too concerned about the details of the finances, rather just that I feel my entry fee was "worth it". I'd say the vast majority of the tourneys I've played, from casual acepots to major events have fallen into that category.

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Sam and I can get along in the spring cause we both "still think" our teams CAN WIN!!!

If and I say If where to merge would they play? Fresno?

It gets nasty when one or both of them suck. Oh right the dodgers always suck.

Back to the point Tim your right if all is good and on the up and up then I am fine with it. but ( jub always has/is a butt) we need a better way of finding out what people really think about what happens at events. Like I suggested an e-bay type feedback system. Andrewis on the right track but those events should be plumbs not start up events. imho

Sam You too are correct It's just the controversy/argument has gone on so long before you arrived I felt like I had expressed my concerns/suggestions many times before hand. Kinda like coming in 15 min after the movie started.

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It gets nasty when one or both of them suck. Oh right the dodgers always suck.

If by suck you mean that they are the favorite to win the National League, we agree. If you mean anything else,

Sam You too are correct It's just the controversy/argument has gone on so long before you arrived I felt like I had expressed my concerns/suggestions many times before hand. Kinda like coming in 15 min after the movie started.

Does it matter when I sat down if I read the book beforehand? If you feel like you have expressed your concerns/suggestions before, what is the point of rehashing them every time the subject comes up? Do you think that there are those who do not know how you feel about things like financial transparency?

Seriously... it is the honey that attracts the flies. They do not like the vinegar so much.

ďI believe I can hit 18 greens, hit every fairway, you know ó Vision 54, which means you birdie every hole, thatís in the back of my mind. I want to putt better, chip better. That day when I hit 18 greens and one putt, Iíll know Iím a complete golfer. Will that ever happen? Iím not sure, but itís possible. The 54 vision is always in the back of my mind.Ē~Annika SŲrenstam